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Long Term Deployments and Stress

Long Term Deployments and Stress explores some of the special causal factors behind the stress that impacts our men and women in the United States Armed Forces. PTSD is just one of many issues that can impact these brave men and women who serve our country. This presentation walks viewers through the unique stressors that impact members of the armed forces and their families when deployed on long term missions. Learn more about long term deployment and stress for U.S. Armed Forces members

Good morning. It is an extreme honor to be here with you this morning to explore a topic that is something I am sure many of you can relate to. In the work that I do at American Military University, as well as in my own private practice as a counselor, I can tell you that LTD can be for many people – including the soldier and family, one of the most stressful events that can occur during the course of a lifetime. The truth is that during LTD, there is a time when emotional CHAOS sets in. And how could things not be chaotic? A soldier is being deployed to an often times dangerous situation – where fear and uncertainty about the person’s well-being is a very real concern. And so yes – CHAOS often is the single word that is used to describe the time of deployment. But there is a silver lining here … because CHAOS is the point in time when change is most likely.

Long Term Deployments and Stress

1.
Prof. John D. Moore. Ph.D.
American Military University
LONG TERM DEPLOYMENTS:
Soldiers Under Stress
Families in Crisis

9.
Step One:
Develop a stress prevention plan
1. Anticipate ahead of time that a deployment will happen
2. Brainstorm as to what modes of communication might be available
3. Let soldier make first contact and report best times for communication
4. Set a time and date for each communication session and if at all
possible, stick with it
5. Realize that schedules change for both parties and flexibility is a must!

10.
Step Two:
healthy communications
1. Share important information that is relevant to the family unit
2. Express what each person needs
3. Share true feelings and expressions of love & commitment
4. Tell the truth if problems have occurred with children – don’t sugar
coat a problem
5. Avoid falling into the trap of becoming “glued” to the T.V.
6. Avoid rehashing old arguments
7. Reconfirm the next communication session

11.
Step Three:
Establish a routine
1. Stay involved with prior family commitments (worship services, etc)
2. Celebrate the holidays
3. Set aside one day a week for a family event
4. If possible, connect with other military families on a regular basis
5. Have another family member continue acting as a mentor during the
soldier’s departure
6. Explore the idea of creating connection activities

12.
Step Four:
Reassess your plan
1. Is the plan working?
2. What can be changed?
3. What cannot be changed?
4. Look for new opportunities that may appear

13.
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
A. The person has been exposed to a traumatic event in which both of the following were present:
1. Person experienced, witnessed, or was confronted with an event or events that involved actual or threatened death or
serious injury, or a threat to the physical integrity of self or others
2. Person's response involved intense fear, helplessness, or horror. Note: In children, this may be expressed instead by
disorganized or agitated behavior
B. The traumatic event is persistently re-experienced in one (or more) of the following ways:
1. recurrent and intrusive distressing recollections of the event, including images, thoughts, or perceptions. Note: In young
children, repetitive play may occur in which themes or aspects of the trauma are expressed.
2. recurrent distressing dreams of the event. Note: In children, there may be frightening dreams without recognizable
content.
3. acting or feeling as if the traumatic event were recurring (includes a sense of reliving the experience, illusions,
hallucinations, and Dissociative flashback episodes, including those that occur on awakening or when intoxicated). Note:
In young children, trauma-specific reenactment may occur.
CON’T NEXT SLIDE

14.
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder CON’T
4. intense psychological distress at exposure to internal or external cues that symbolize or resemble an aspect of the
traumatic event
5. physiological reactivity on exposure to internal or external cues that symbolize or resemble an aspect of the traumatic
event
C. Persistent avoidance of stimuli associated with the trauma and numbing of general responsiveness (not
present before the trauma), as indicated by three (or more) of the following:
1. efforts to avoid thoughts, feelings, or conversations associated with the trauma
2. efforts to avoid activities, places, or people that arouse recollections of the trauma
3. inability to recall an important aspect of the trauma
4. markedly diminished interest or participation in significant activities
5. feeling of detachment or estrangement from others
6. restricted range of affect (e.g., unable to have loving feelings)
7. sense of a foreshortened future (e.g., does not expect to have a career, marriage, children, or a normal life span)

16.
Be Supportive
How Can
You Help?
Look for signs of
Anxiety
Look for Signs of
Substance Abuse
Look for Signs
of depression
Ways to support PTSD Affected Soldier
Educate Yourself
On PTSD
Don’t Try To Be
Their Therapist